Summer Blog Series: 5 Ideas to Help Students Build Social Skills
As an educator, teaching students of various abilities can be challenging enough, but how do you handle all of the social-emotional factors that go beyond academic content, such as building social skills? In today’s elementary schools, teachers do much more than just teach; they also have to find ways to navigate what can feel like a minefield of emotions and behaviors. These can include things like anxiety, behavior problems, and stress from home. Teachers often feel a lot of pressure because they don’t always have the training or resources to help with these issues.
Throughout this series, we will explore three areas that teachers often struggle with in meeting these needs: helping students to find resiliency, learn social skills, and experience emotional regulation. We will provide ideas for social-emotional activities to help both students and teachers succeed in these common areas.
To read part 1 of this series, Building Resiliency, click here.
What Does it Mean to Have Good Social Skills?
For elementary students, having good social skills means being able to communicate clearly, listen actively, show empathy, work well in groups, and resolve conflicts peacefully. Teaching these skills helps students build strong friendships, succeed academically, and create a positive classroom environment.
By fostering good social skills, we help our students develop confidence, manage their emotions, and contribute to a supportive and inclusive school community.
Why Students Struggle with Social Skills
In today’s world, many students face challenges in developing strong social skills. Several factors contribute to this struggle:
- Increased Screen Time: Children spend a significant amount of time on screens, engaging in digital interactions rather than face-to-face communication. This can limit their opportunities to practice and develop social skills in real-life situations.
- Less Play Time: Increased screen time often comes at the expense of unstructured playtime, where children naturally learn to negotiate, share, and collaborate with their peers.
- Busy Schedules: Many families have hectic schedules, leaving less time for children to engage in meaningful conversations and social activities with family members.
- High Expectations to Succeed Academically: The pressure to excel academically can lead to a focus on individual achievement rather than collaborative learning, reducing opportunities for students to work on social interactions.
- Social Isolation: Covid shut downs contributed greatly to the lack of social skills in some students. They may have difficulty forming connections with peers, which can impede the development of social skills.
Understanding why students struggle with social skills is crucial for addressing these challenges. By being aware of these factors, teachers and parents can create environments that help children develop strong social skills, ensuring they are well-equipped for social interactions both in and out of the classroom.
Activities to Build Social Skills
So how do you, as a teacher, help your students build those important social skills? Here are 5 ideas that won’t drain your time or energy.
- Emotion Charades: Play a game of charades where students act out different emotions and the rest of the class guesses what they are feeling. This helps students recognize and label emotions in themselves and others.
2. Kindness Jar: Community starts with kindness! Have a jar where students can drop notes about acts of kindness they observe in the classroom. Periodically read these notes aloud to celebrate positive behaviors and encourage a culture of kindness. Here’s a great freebie Kindness Jar resource from The Teacher’s Prep!
3. Classroom Jobs: Most kids love to have ownership in running their classroom (plus it save you time!) We have our students fill out applications to apply for the job they want to have. This builds important skills that they will use in the real world. Classroom jobs require students to work together and support each other. This teaches responsibility, cooperation, and the importance of contributing to a community.
4. Read Books that Build Social Skills: Using picture books to teach social skills is effective because they engage children with relatable stories and visuals. They help kids understand and practice empathy, kindness, and conflict resolution. Picture books also spark discussions, reinforce lessons, and support different learning styles, making them a valuable tool for teachers to enhance students’ social skills. These books are a great place to start:
This story highlights the importance of inclusion and how small acts of kindness can make a big difference.
A great story to teach how to make friends and solve conflicts.
We love how this book teaches the consequences of small actions and encourages children to think about the impact of their behavior on others.
For more book recommendations, check out our blog post here.
5. Teach Conflict Resolution Skills
Conflict happens multiple times a day in the classroom and many students aren’t equipped with the necessary problem solving skills. This super-hero themed resource will help provide your students with a way to work through conflicts, reflect on the way they are treating others in the classroom and help you create a positive classroom culture.
Grab a freebie from this resource below!
For elementary students, having good social skills means being able to communicate clearly, empathize with others, cooperate with peers, and navigate social situations with respect and flexibility. These skills are crucial for their success in school and life, emotional well-being, and creating a positive classroom environment. By nurturing and developing these skills, students can build stronger friendships, achieve their academic goals, and positively contribute to their school community.